Uncleared Tree-Trimming Debris Triggers Traffic and Civic Woes Across Hyderabad

Residents across Hyderabad, including in KPHB Colony and Dilsukhnagar, are facing severe traffic hazards and civic nuisance as tree branches pruned by the Telangana Southern Power Distribution Company Limited (TGSPDCL) remain uncleared on roads and footpaths for days.

The discom has been undertaking extensive tree-trimming drives to prevent short circuits in overhead power lines ahead of the monsoon. However, the resulting debris has been left abandoned in multiple neighbourhoods, causing roads to turn slippery and breeding insects.

TGSPDCL officials attributed the delays in clearance to the absence of nearby dumping yards under the limits of the three municipal corporations, noting that the lack of sites within a 3 to 4 km radius has hindered operations. The trimming work is executed by contractors under the supervision of discom staff, who also review the sites during the Praja Bata and Basti Bata programmes.

To resolve the bottleneck, TGSPDCL Chairman and Managing Director Jitesh V. Patil proposed during coordination meetings with the Cyberabad and Malkajgiri municipal corporations that the discom would pay municipal bodies if civic staff tagged and removed the pruned branches in circles where waste was accumulating.

Despite instructions issued to superintending and divisional engineers to clear debris promptly, citizens report persistent issues. In KPHB Colony, branches cut near the Kashi Vishwanath Temple were left unattended for more than four days, leaving rotting leaves on the road and attracting stray animals.

Pedestrians and commuters reported similar problems near the Hanuman Temple by Chaitanyapuri X Roads in Dilsukhnagar, where trimmed branches dumped on the footpath forced two-wheelers onto the main carriageway during peak hours, worsening traffic congestion.

TGSPDCL officials stated that tree-trimming debris is typically removed on the same day or the following day and that dedicated teams are monitoring complaints across media and social platforms. The utility noted that roughly 80 per cent of tree-pruning work to prevent monsoon disruptions has been completed across the city, with the remainder scheduled to finish by the end of this month.